Articles in 2013

Two recent studies show that vasoactive intestinal polypeptide-expressing interneurons exert a disinhibitory effect on cortical pyramidal cells in a number of brain areas, and this has important implications for control of cortical processing and behaviour.

Cognitive and neurobiological changes during development influence the content and longevity of memories for events that occurred in early childhood. Mark L. Howe discusses the implications for court cases in which the main evidence consists of adults' recollections of childhood experiences.

In this Perspective article, Reiss and colleagues summarize the most recent neuroimaging studies attempting to determine the neural correlates of humour and discuss the influence of sex, personality traits and certain psychiatric disorders on humour appreciation.

The results of two new studies suggest that human cortical interneurons predominantly originate in subcortical regions.

Increasing evidence of the high incidence of mild cognitive impairment and psychomotor slowing in patients with chronic liver disease has highlighted the need to treat the neurological alterations of these patients. In this article, Felipo reviews the latest studies aimed at understanding how liver failure affects brain function and potential ways to ameliorate these effects.

Specific emotional memories can be selectively manipulated during sleep by sensory stimuli.

The classification of psychiatric disorders in the DSM has been influential in neuroscience research but has also been subject to criticism. In this Viewpoint, six leaders in the field discuss whether the latest version, DSM-5, as well as the dimensional approach provided by the RDoC, will move psychiatry research forward.

Local field potentials (LFPs) provide a wealth of information about synaptic processing in cortical populations but are difficult to interpret. Einevoll and colleagues consider the neural origin of cortical LFPs and discuss LFP modelling and analysis methods that can improve the interpretation of LFP data.

Acute inflammatory pain can result in long-lasting central sensitization of spinal nociceptive pathways that is masked by upregulation of endogenous opioid signalling via the μ-opioid receptor.

Resident astrocytes in the adult mouse brain can be reprogrammed to generate neuroblasts, which in turn can form functional neurons.

Understanding how each of the many diverse subtypes of neurons that make up the cortex are specified during development presents a continuing challenge for developmental neurobiologists. Macklis and colleagues describe recent advances in our understanding of the specification of cortical projection neuron subtype and area identity.

Children with conduct disorder show persistent aggressive or antisocial behaviour and, in some cases, psychopathic traits. In this Review, Blair describes the neural and cognitive mechanisms — and their interaction with environmental factors — that underlie psychopathic behaviour.